For nearly the entirety of Ruby's life, she had been alone. As a child, she had Granny to lean on, but that was as far as it went. The other children seemed to sense something was different about her and stayed away from her, even though Ruby had no idea what it was. All she knew was that she had little to no friends growing up in that little village. She had always felt crushed there. The longer she stayed the more unbearable it was an entire world around her and she was convinced she would live and die in this tiny corner of it. Then Granny got that cloak for her, even though she wanted a pony that year. It set her apart from the rest of the people. She used to hear the young farmers whisper as she passed, beware the girl in the red hood. Most guys didn't listen. After all, Ruby was very beautiful, she didn't need to be told that and she knew that she would attract suitors. None of them received any attention from her however, either from her disinterest or Granny's threats. Little Red was left alone...until Peter moved into town. He was the first person who saw Ruby as nothing more than a beautiful, lonely girl. He even asked for her name instead of calling her Red like the rest of the ignorant populus. Even Granny called her that, and she had always accepted it because she didn't feel like a Ruby. Rubies were elegant and exquisite. She was just a poor farm girl. He was her first friend, her first kiss, her first lover, first everything. To say she was in love was an understatement. Ruby always believed it would be them against the world forever. They planned to leave the village as soon as they were old enough, even saving their meager earnings for almost 3 years for the trip. They were going to see the world.
But then the animals in the village started dying. Once a month there would be dead livestock and talk of a wild beast that lived in the forest. The fear of a wild animal did not compare to her love for Peter and Granny had been getting on her nerves about staying inside, so Ruby snuck away any chance she could get. Then a girl showed up in her chicken coop trying to steal some eggs. As soon as Snow arrived everything went downhill. Ruby found out what she was and she lost Peter in the most brutal way.
After that she met Quinn and found her mother and for the first time she had more than a family. She had a pack. A real wolf pack to learn and grow with and in a flash...it was gone too. Her mother was gone, Quinn was gone, the pack was gone. A wolf without a pack was hardly a wolf at all. Lone wolves were unnatural, strange beasts, and Ruby hated being one of them. Wolves were social creatures, creatures with large families to lean on and be a part of, creatures that usually couldn't survive on their own. All that remained for Ruby was Snow. And for a time, Ruby thought that was all she needed, but she quickly found out it wasn't. Snow soon found David and had a kingdom to run, an evil stepmother to defeat and a child to prepare for. Ruby faded into the background.
Just like now. Ruby hadn't spoken to Snow in months and she could honestly say that she wasn't missing out on anything. She was sitting with Belle and Ariel on a large rock, overlooking the slumbering town. She was lost in her thoughts and neither Belle nor Ariel interrupted. They were also very close friends and just seemed to get Ruby. They knew when to be quiet and let Ruby drown in her thoughts, and knew when to drag the werewolf out of them and get her to focus on brighter things. Their presence was reassuring and it always pleased Ruby's wolf to have the sweet souled girls near. Tonight was no exception. Her last meeting with Regina had stirred up a great deal of dark thoughts and emotions that she was having trouble placing.
"Guys, can I ask you something?"
Belle nodded. "Of course, Ruby." Ariel simply looked up, waiting for the question.
"Do you believe in fighting for a love you can never have?" Ruby asked softly.
"You should always fight for love." The mermaid answered.
"What if they're with someone else and you know they'll never choose you? That you can never be with them, can never have a family with them? What do you do?" Mal was the only one Ruby had told about her affair. Given time and if she was actively paying attention to something that didn't involve Zelena or Lily, the dragon probably could have figured it out without being told at all seeing as how Ruby couldn't hide her love for those she cared about even if she wanted to. For Belle, it was probably easy to see, but she never stated that she knew.
"Love can never be lost." Belle said. "You can fight it all you want, but when it's real...there is nothing anyone can do to stop it. Why? Do you mean the other mother?" She reached out and touched Ruby's stomach with a soft smile before taking one of the wolf's hands and giving it a gentle squeeze.
"I do. It just seems that no one ever chooses me. Any chance at happiness I ever get, I lose it before I can enjoy it. And this person, the other mother, I told her that she could end things whenever she wanted to. I thought I would be content just to have her in my life and have her as a friend, but I'm not. It hurts."
Belle wrapped the wolf in her arms and pulled her close. Ariel did the same, drawing a smile out of the werewolf. "I know it hurts, and I know you think that you'll never find someone better but you should try. I think you should focus on the baby for now, but someone who chooses you is going to be in your life regardless. They'll fight for you. You deserve it. You deserve the fucking world, Ruby Lucas, after everything you've been through."
Ruby sighed and relaxed into her friends' embraces.
"Have you started thinking about a den location?" Ruby simply shook her head. "What if you take Jefferson's old mansion. No one uses it. You can turn it into a perfect wolf den. I'll help. We all will."
"Thank you, Belle."
"I want to help you with the baby, you know. Absolutely anything."
"Me too!" Ariel piped in.
Ruby scoffed. "Not you too. I can't have 6 godmothers."
Belle laughed. "No, we...want to join your pack. Really join so you won't have to be alone."
Ruby sat up immediately and looked at her friend. "You want the Mark?"
"Yes. Then neither one of us will be alone anymore."
"But Belle, you know I'm not leadership material. I'm even sure how to mark you, I don't know shit about being a werewolf."
Ariel rolled her eyes. "Wolfy, baby, I don't know what happened over the last few weeks that caused this dramatic shift in your personality, but you are leadership material material. You've lead legions into battle."
"You mean farmers to their deaths." Ruby retorted.
"I mean people who were so inspired by you that they wanted to pick up a sword and fight for their people. You're a natural leader and we are going to find out how you can learn to be a werewolf."
"She's right." Belle agreed. "There's books, there's Mal, there's Granny. I guess you didn't learn much from your mom."
"Couldn't. Only knew her for two days."
"Then it's settled." Ariel squealed, leaping on top of Ruby. "We're gonna be a pack!"
XXxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Regina sighed, tapping the arm of the couch. She looked over at the tv and waved her hand, dragging out all of the DVDs and movies she possessed from the entertainment system. Finding nothing to her interest she put it all back and snapped her fingers. The tv switched on and she turned to Netflix and began mindlessly looking through list of titles to watch for her next day of vacation.
Emma came in and flopped next to her, throwing her phone to the side. "Ruby's still not answering. Do you think she's okay? She always answers."
"Perhaps she's working." Regina suggested, even though she was starting to worry as well. Ruby never went a day without sending at least a text. She would usually stop by, but she had been silent since their night out. She wasn't working, Regina knew, she had already called Granny.
"She's not." Emma sighed. "Granny said she didn't come in for her shift."
"Hmm." Regina smiled softly as Emma snuggled against her, laying her head on her shoulder. "Ruby's a big girl. I'm sure she's fine." Even though Emma was right there next to her, her thoughts were swept away to how much the wolf meant to her. She loved Emma but she also adored Ruby to the point where she shouldn't. Ruby offered her something that she never felt before. She offered Regina protection and serenity. On the nights of the full moon when they were together Regina's emotions and her magic were all over the place, but all she had to do was enter Ruby's arms and everything was okay. She felt like she didn't need to be the hardass mayor or the cold-hearted queen anymore. She didn't need to protect herself because Ruby would take care of her and care for her like no one else would. The thought of losing either one made her sick to think about. Both of them meant more to her than anyone. A life without them was a life she didn't want to live.
"Regina? You okay?" Emma's voice brought her out of her reverie and she nodded. "What are you thinking about?"
"About how you and Ruby are so important to me." Regina replied, kissing her cheek.
"Oh yeah?"
"Yes. I started with Ruby, and then I thought about you. You started taking your clothes off for some reason…" Regina smirked.
"I'm not taking my clothes off but you're cute for trying." Emma replied. "I'm too tired from last night."
"You're turning down sex?" Regina sat up and felt of the blonde's forehead and neck. "Are you okay?"
Emma shook her off. "I'm fine. I just really wanted to go swimming today. Ruby said she would come with us."
"Well, why don't we stop by and check on her. Maybe she lost her phone or something." Regina shrugged. Enna agreed and the two got dressed for a day at the lake. They drove out to Ruby's house, but were only greeted with Zelena. Scowls appeared on both sisters faces.
"Where's Ruby?" Emma demanded. Regina's eyes zeroed in on the bag in her hand. "What are you doing?"
"I don't really think it's any of your business." Zelena replied.
"Where is she?!" Emma hissed, stepping forward. Regina frowned and pulled her girlfriend back, the sudden rage shocking her.
"She's fine. She wants to be alone." Zelena hissed in return, not backing down in the least. "Find someone else to play with." She attempted to walk around them but Regina stopped her.
"Please, Zelena, we're just worried." She pleaded.
Zelena rolled her eyes. "She's at my house, but she specifically asked for privacy from any and everyone. Respect that. I just picked up her phone which is why she hasn't answered and she'll be staying with me and Mal for a couple days."
"Why? Is something wrong? Did something happen?" Emma demanded, becoming more frantic by the second.
Zelena curled her lip, but shook it off. "She may call you back when I deliver her things. Until then, give her some space. She'll talk when she's ready." The witch teleported away, leaving the pair to worry even more.
Zelena appeared in her living room and placed Ruby's bag against the wall, removing her phone and tossing it to the wolf laying on the couch with Mal in front of the tv.
Ruby sat up and frowned at seeing over a dozen missed calls. Half were from Granny and the others were from Regina, Emma and Belle, asking where she was and if she was okay. She flipped through the half dozen texts asking the same questions and sighed. "Do you think I should tell them?" She asked, looking up at Mal and Zelena.
"It's up to you, dearie." Zelena shrugged. "Although you hold all the power at the moment. You shouldn't have to be their dirty little secret. You don't deserve to be anyone's secret."
"Well, technically I shouldn't have been someone's side bitch either."
"Ruby, it is likely that one of them is the mother?" Mal asked.
"It couldn't be anyone else." Ruby said.
"Then you need to talk to them. Not now, maybe not even this week, but unless you want to raise your children alone-"
"They love each other." Ruby shook her head. "And I don't want to ruin that."
"It's already ruined if they have to come to you for something one of them can't provide." Zelena replied, leaning on the back of the couch. "You deserve better than this. Either they act right and admit their faults, or I would drop the both of them and let them be miserable until they talk to each other and tell the truth."
Ruby sighed and leaned against Mal. The dragon purred and kissed the top of her head. "Are you in love with them?"
"Yes."
"Then stop sleeping with them, it will only hurt more." Mal said. "You can continue to be friends with them of course, but what you should be focusing on is your child. We have to start building you a den and a nursery, thinking of names." It was true she hadn't given any thought to those things. "If it's meant to be, it will be, no matter what."
Ruby slowly nodded. "You're right. You're both right." Leave it to her to fall in love with two people and not be able to have either one. As badly as she wanted to be with Regina and Emma right now, she knew some time apart would be good for them for now. She'd call later and see how they were. They were probably frantic. As if on cue her phone started ringing.
/
Emma almost did a backflip of joy when Ruby answered the phone. She stepped out into the backyard so as not to disturb Regina while she was cursing in elvish at some crime show and sat down in a lawn chair beneath the apple tree. "Hey, Ruby."
"Hey, Em."
"Is everything okay?"
She could hear the smile in Ruby's voice when she replied. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a small shifter situation that I had to talk to Mal about. No biggie."
"Well, what was it? Are you sick?" Emma asked. "Me and Regina were worried. Is there anything we can do?"
"I know, I just got the messages. Look, everything is fine. I'm just gonna stay here for a couple days. I'll call you tomorrow."
"And if you need me." Emma said.
Ruby laughed. "Of course."
The wolf hung up and Emma sighed and put the phone down. She pulled her knees up to her chin, thinking back to how far her relationship with her best friend had come. The nights Emma had told Regina that she was working late were usually complete lies. Storybrooke was a small town. Except for the occasional monster or villain, nothing much ever happened. Paperwork usually took up most of her time. So when Regina was at work or at home, tending to the house and to their son, Emma drove to Ruby's house, a quaint little thing on the edge of the forest. She would make her way around back and knock on the door. The werewolf always waited until she knocked 4 times before opening the door. When she did open it, she wouldn't be wearing anything and soon...neither would Emma. She couldn't possibly describe why the werewolf just made her crazy and made her feel so...special. She practically lived for the nights she could meet Ruby for mindblowing sex and a much needed pillowtalk session. Ruby was an ear always ready to listen to her problems. She was just someone Emma found herself needing more and more. It broke her heart to cheat on Regina. She loved her with all her heart but she was unwilling to let Ruby go.
"You know." Ruby had said one night as they lay tangled in each other's embrace. "Regina ought to be the one you talk to about this kind of thing. She more than anyone knows what's like to be forced to be someone you don't want to be. She never wanted to be queen, much less an evil queen."
"I know." Emma said softly. "But I'm the Savior. It's who I am and I want to do right by her."
"If you really think Regina is with you because you're the savior then I think you need to reexamine your relationship." Ruby replied. She smoothed a piece of hair behind Emma's ear. "You're Emma. Emma comes before anything and anyone. If that's not good enough for your family, then you need to talk to your family. Pretending to be who you are not is a curse in itself."
Emma sighed and moved closer to Ruby, laying her head on her chest. "I don't know. I don't want to lose anyone."
"If they don't accept you for who you are then they need to be lost, Emma. I like who you are. When you're just Emma." Ruby kissed the top of her head. "I think Emma might even be better than the savior."
Emma smiled. "Thank you, Ruby."
"Anytime." Ruby purred. "What else is bothering that beautiful brain of yours?"
"Nothing, just...I'm thinking about quitting my job. I know I took it to honor Graham but lately I haven't been able to devote any time to Henry or Regina. Honestly, I think Henry would rather have my parents as his parents with how much we've been working lately."
"You sure that's it?" Ruby smirked.
Emma raised her head. "What do you mean?"
"I don't think Henry is why you're upset."
"He's partially it. He's put so much faith in me and I haven't done much as the savior besides break the first curse. I never defeated Regina, Mom killed Cora, Gold killed Pan, Regina defeated Zelena, the Queens of Darkness basically turned on each other. And when I broke the curse you got your wolf back and you said so yourself you hated it."
Ruby tilted her chin up so they could see each other's eyes. "Henry is your son. You are his mother. That is all you need to be. You don't have to be a hero or a savior to earn his love. If you end up like Regina, breaking your back to please a child, it will break my heart. You don't need to be anything other than who you are and should you ever find that you feel inadequate, come to me, and I'll remind you every time how amazing Emma Swan is...when she's just being Emma Swan." Ruby kissed her forehead. "But that's not all, is it? Let me guess: You're feeling guilty, Emma. Because of this. I know you."
Emma sighed. "But I don't want to stop."
"I won't force you too. You know I'll never tell what happened between us, and as I've said, you can end this whenever you want to. No strings. You hold all the cards."
Emma smiled softly and kissed Ruby's lips. They were so soft and tasted so sweet. She was almost addicted to them. "I love you, Ruby."
"I love you too, Emma."
It began months ago as a simple drunken mistake. Afterwards, Emma didn't want to stop. She didn't want to let Ruby go. She knew it was wrong but she just couldn't stop herself. Regina was dark and sultry and everything she did and said sounded and looked seductive. The woman was probably a walking fantasy that anyone in their right mind would want. And she wanted Emma. But when it came to Ruby, things were different. Ruby was mysterious and wild and carefree and she had been alone for such a long time that Emma wanted to be the one to get rid of that loneliness. Everyone leaned on Ruby. She did, Regina did, her parents did. They were all selfish when it came to Ruby and never thought of her unless they needed her for something. The same way they had once treated Regina. Well, continued to treat Regina sometimes. Emma knew she would lose everyone she cared about if anyone ever found out about it. Regina would leave her, probably take Henry, probably fire her and her parents. Cast another curse for all she knew. She would lose everything. But for someone like Ruby, Emma found it was worth the risk.
"Emma?" Regina leaned out of the back door. "Is everything alright?" She stepped outside and came to sit in Emma's lap. "You okay?"
"Yeah, I just talked to Ruby...for all of 5 seconds." Emma shrugged.
"What was wrong with her?" Regina asked immediately.
"Don't know. She claimed it was some shapeshifter thing but she wouldn't tell me anymore about it." Emma pulled Regina close and leaned her head against her stomach. Regina ran her fingers through her blonde locks in an effort to soothe her. "Do you think I'm overreacting?"
"No, you're just worried about her. If she's fine then you can stop worrying. Maybe try a little magic?"
"Regina, I suck."
"Because you don't practice!"
"You are never going to let this go, are you?"
Regina stood up. "Waste of potential, you lazy tease." She conjured a candle and tossed it to Emma. "No sex until you light that candle with magic."
"What?! No sex on vacation? Are you crazy?" Emma snapped. Regina only cocked an eyebrow. "Fine, you're lucky I love you, woman."
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
For the next couple days things were peaceful and wonderful for the happy couple. That is, until Emma decided to take Regina to the diner for breakfast. They decided to walk since it was such a pretty day. "So what's happening tonight?" Regina inquired, pulling Emma close for a kiss.
"I don't know. Maybe a movie night? Or we could head to the Rabbit Hole? What do you feel like?"
"I don't know." Regina shrugged. They stopped at a flower stand down the street from Granny's and Regina smirked as Emma went about purchasing her some roses. She glanced around and paused when she spotted Ruby stepping out of a blue truck. The werewolf looked delicious in a casual little black dress and tennis shoes. She hurried around the car and opened the doors for Dorothy and Belle. Regina scowled when Dorothy took Ruby's hand as Belle lead them into the diner. Now, Regina would never call herself a jealous person. More like...territorial. Jealousy implied she wanted something someone else had. Ruby was hers. Period. After a few minutes Regina almost dragged Emma into the diner. Three days they don't hear from Ruby and now all of sudden she's with Dorothy?! Why were they holding hands? When did they even become friends?
"Hey, look, it's Ruby." Emma beamed, bounding over to hug the wolf. "It's about time you showed back up in town. Get tired of the witch and the dragon?"
Ruby smiled and stood up to hug Regina. "Nah, I just couldn't seduce Mal. Tried my hardest but she's a tough nut to crack."
Regina rolled her eyes. "What is your fascination with her?"
"Hey, I am a lesbian werewolf surrounded all day by sexy female royalty. All of my friends are beautiful princesses or queens. How am I not supposed to be affected by that?" Ruby grinned. "But Mal is a fucking goddess. Have you seen that woman in a bikini? Those legs are something else. Anyways, you guys want to join us?"
The scowl on Dorothy's face more than showed her displeasure at the suggestion, but Regina was nothing if not a bitch so she was quick to agree. She made sure to sit next to Ruby while Emma sat on Ruby's other side, forcing Dorothy and Belle to sit on the other side of the table. Luckily they hadn't chosen a booth or they all would have been cramped. One of the waitresses came over to take their orders.
"So, Ruby," Regina said, sipping her coffee. "Why did you have to stay with my sister?"
"I told you, I was trying to get Mal into bed." Ruby shrugged. "Her lips are beautiful. I bet she's like the best kisser in the world. Is she, Gina?"
Regina cocked an eyebrow. "If you're doing this to annoy me, please stop."
"Maleficent won't be able to resist you for long." Belle smiled, completely unaware of the queen silently fuming across the table. She didn't want to think about anyone else touching her wolf. Especially not Mal. The dragon was indeed a goddess and she was probably one of the greatest kissers in the world. Which was why Ruby couldn't kiss her. But after a while Regina began to see that Ruby was merely deflecting. Any attempts to inquire about her absence for the past few days were always met with a deflection to Mal or shapeshifting. Belle didn't seem bothered by this, probably trusting that Ruby would talk to her in time or she already knew the cause of Ruby's absence, but Dorothy and Emma were beginning to be a little pushy with the subject and each other.
"Why don't you just drop it, okay?" Ruby suddenly growled. She took a deep breath and Regina swore her face turned green before she was scrambling to the bathroom. Belle was the first to rush after her. Dorothy ran to their aid but Regina held Emma back.
"Regina, what-"
"Sit." Regina commanded. She glanced around, making sure that no one was really paying attention to them before smacking Emma in the back of her head. "What the hell are you doing? If Ruby didn't want to see us, she didn't want to see us. Let it go."
"I know, I just…" Emma sighed. "Something is bothering her. I know when people are lying and Ruby just then-"
"I know Ruby too but she wasn't lying."
"No, it's like...she was trying to convince us that everything is fine and it's clearly not. I just want to help and I can't do that if she doesn't tell me anything."
"Then all we can do is wait until she's ready." Regina kissed her forehead. "Okay? Just give her time. We can't crowd around her demanding to know all her secrets. Everyone is entitled to their own."
Emma nodded slowly. "I guess you're right."
They both sat and waited, picking at their food but never actually eating, until Dorothy returned. But she speed walked right past them and out the front door. Belle returned as well and retook her seat. "Ruby ran out the back door." She said softly, placing money on the table. "I'm sorry, I think it would be best to give Ruby some space."
"Do you know what's going on?" Regina asked. From the look in Belle's eyes, she did.
"I do, but it's not mine to tell. Have a nice day." She walked out too and Regina looked at Emma.
"I'm not really hungry."
"Me either."
Regina never knew how much someone could affect her. When Ruby or Emma hurt, she hurt. When they hurt she didn't want to eat, want to drink, didn't even want to use her magic. The walk back home felt slow and she felt sluggish, too tired to lift one foot after another. They walked into the house and went to the bedroom to lay down. Well, Regina did. Emma couldn't stand it and ended up leaving to go to the training area built in the basement of the police station. It was where a certain wolf found her an hour later, pouring with sweat and furiously hammering away at a punching bag like her life depended on it. Ruby watched the blonde with a lustful smirk for quite a while, her eyes taking in the sight of the wet abs, sexy back muscles and bouncing cleavage.
"You need to be more aware of your surroundings." Ruby said. Emma whipped around, fists raised. She relaxed when she saw who it was.
"You need to stop sneaking up on me." Emma smiled. It quickly started to fade as she walked over. "You okay?"
Ruby nodded. "Just a little stomachache. Sorry I ran out on you guys." Emma scoffed and walked into her arms. Ruby picked her up and the blonde wrapped her arms around her neck and her legs around her waist, burying her face in Ruby's neck.
"I'm sorry how I acted today. i just get worried when you stop talking to me. I don't mean to be all up in your business or anything like that-"
"Don't apologize. Everything is cool, Em. I just had to come make sure you weren't upset over this morning." Ruby purred, placing the blonde back on the ground. It was then that she noticed the mark on Emma's neck, blurry from her sweat running through the makeup that she used to hide it, but it was there. Emma held still, looking puzzled as Ruby wiped the rest of it off. "What is that?"
Emma shrugged. "I've had it for a while. Thought it was a bruise but it doesn't hurt and it hasn't gone away."
Ruby could see that it was not a bruise at all. It was a mark...that she left. "Shit, um, Emma, I have to go."
"What? Already?" Emma reached for her waist and pulled her close. "You sure everything's okay?"
Ruby nodded. "I just really have to go…" She glanced down and licked her lips when she noticed the sweat pooling in Emma's cleavage.
"You sure?" Emma asked, smirking.
"Y-yes." Ruby grabbed the blonde and kissed her so hard she knew their lips would bruise, but she could hardly care. Her wolf purred at this, at holding what she considered hers, kissing what she considered hers, claiming what she considered hers. She wanted more than anything to rip Emma's clothes off and take her right then and there, but she remembered Mal's advice and knew she couldn't keep doing it. Her wolf growled in displeasure when she stepped back.
"Ruby?" Emma frowned.
"Huh?" Ruby ran a hand through her hair, shutting out her wolf as best as she could. "I'm sorry, I have to go."
Emma watched the werewolf dash out of the gym. Something was definitely wrong with Ruby and it irritated her that Ruby couldn't seem to talk to her about it. She eventually gathered her things and made her way home for a nice hot shower. Regina was still napping so the blonde climbed into bed with her and joined her in dream land. A few hours later found them preparing lunch together in the kitchen. Regina smirked, taking the pan of lasagna out of the oven. "So what happened after you cracked the windshield of your foster mother?"
"I ran in the house, smashed her curio cabinet thing, grabbed my bag and got the hell out of there." Emma laughed. "She was so pissed, but that's what those assholes get for sticking me with some crazy bitch who just wanted free child labor."
Regina shuddered. "I don't fear many things or people, but I do fear what it was like to grow up in a foster home. Sounds like a hellhole." She looked up at Emma. "Were all of them like that?"
Emma shrugged. "For the most part. If wasn't the foster parent, it was always the other foster kids. I learned to deal with it, take what I needed, moved on when I could."
The queen shook her head. "You were a child, you shouldn't have had to."
"Well, this world is as messed up as any other. I mean, look at what happened to Zelena." Emma hopped onto the counter and watched Regina slice the lasagna.
"I hate to think of you in a place like that. Gods forbid if Henry ever-"
"He won't." Emma assured her. "Thanks to you."
Regina fought off a smile. "Get off my counter and scrub it please."
"My ass is clean." Emma scoffed, getting down and going to get the cleaning supplies. The doorbell rang and Regina moved the lasagna to the table while Emma went to answer it. A moment later, she stepped into the kitchen with a nervous looking Ruby.
"Well, good evening to you too, Miss Lucas." Regina smiled. "Feeling better?"
"Much." Ruby nodded. "The smell of food makes me nauseous if I don't take the medicine Zelena gave me."
"Really? Are you having stomach troubles?" Emma asked, motioning for her to sit and join them.
"Um, actually, no. I only came to tell you guys that I'm pregnant."
Regina took a step back, feeling the wind leave her chest in a rush. Emma was just staring at Ruby, like she'd grown a second head. This was great, but it wasn't. What if she was the other parent? What if Ruby told her secret? Shit! But-but….what if she was... More kids, Regina had always wanted a bigger family. "Congratulations!" Regina almost leaped into Ruby's arms. "I can't believe it."
"You're not the only one." Ruby let out a nervous chuckle. "Haven't told Granny yet. Can't imagine how she'll react." She accepted a hug from a still stunned Emma. "So...dinner?"
"Of course." Regina pushed her into a chair and gave her a sizable helping of lasagna. "So, Ruby, you know if there is anything we can do, feel free to ask." She said as they ate.
"I'll be fine. I'm getting everything in order right now. My friends are helping me." Ruby stated.
"And the...father?" Regina inquired. "Or other mother?"
"They're no longer in the picture." Ruby shrugged, looking down. "Never have been."
Those words cut deeply. Ruby always tried to make sure she was fine with what they were doing, but it was true that she hardly ever thought of what it could mean for her wolf. Regina looked away, too ashamed of herself and afraid to say anything. Emma wasn't faring any better. Ruby stood up abruptly, thanked them for the dinner and left before they could say anything.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Read and Review!